


Awesome Mix Moments

by sherlockholmes-notanamateur (loki_godofmischiefandlies)



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Genre: Awesome Mix Vol. 2, Boogieing Baby Groot, F/M, Ficlets, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, I don't dance, M/M, Movie Spoilers, Other, Pelvic Sorcery, Post Guardians of the Galaxy, Rocket is Ratchet, seriously if you haven't seen GOTG yet don't read this until you do unless you want it spoiled
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-10
Updated: 2014-08-12
Packaged: 2018-02-12 13:12:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2111187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loki_godofmischiefandlies/pseuds/sherlockholmes-notanamateur
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter Quill has somehow added to his 'Awesome Mix' collection, and now the Guardians are subjected to his music choices near constantly while aboard the Milano. </p>
<p>They reluctantly bond thanks to the magic that music seems to cast.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Wouldn't It Be Nice

**Author's Note:**

> I don't have any set number of chapters in mind. This will most likely be little one shots added whenever I hear a song that inspires another chapter. Some of them might come off shippy. That's why I've got those lil relationship tags up dere. But idk if I'll go too deep into ships yet. If I do, I'll label it at the beginning of the chapter so you don't have to read a blatantly shippy ficlet of your NOTP :) 
> 
> The songs I'm using I'm trying to keep within the same genre/time period as the songs on the Awesome Mix from the movie. I may add more if I feel like it applies though. 
> 
> THIS WORK CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE MOVIE AND IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY YET DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU'RE OKAY WITH PLOT POINTS BEING REVEALED. PLEASE. I DON'T WANT TO RUIN YOUR FUN.

Rocket groaned as he heard the sound of guitars drifting through the empty feeling corridors of Quill's ship; he just wanted to  _sleep_. Whenever he was awake all he could feel was the heavy blackness of grief weighing his tiny body down. His fur had lost its natural sheen, his eyes were dull unless he was drunk, and his tail dragged behind him now instead of bobbing along behind of him proudly. 

_Stupid music, stupid Peter, stupid ship, stupid team_ he thought, growling low in his throat as he rolled over and tried to stuff his pillow over his ears to block out the stupid ooga chacka song that made him want to punch things whenever he heard it. His eyes immediately sought out the little splinter that was tucked in the pot next to his bunk and they felt damp.  _Shit_  Rocket thought, wiping at his eyes with his paws as he stared at the twig. Once his vision cleared he looked again at the remnants of his friend. 

_Holy. Shit._ His heart soared as he noticed a tiny green leaf poking up from the top of the twig. A leaf that wasn't there before. 

Groot was growing back. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

He skidded around the corner just as the song was changing, something with a gentle guitar intro, trying not to spill the pot. 

"Guys, GUYS!" Rocket bellowed, almost crashing into Peter's legs. 

"Woah, where's the fire?" Peter asked, lifting a leg and looking down at Rocket. 

"Look!" he almost squeaked, thrusting the pot up into Peter's face. Peter blinked at the twig for a minute before realization dawned on his face. 

"There's a leaf." Peter said softly, amazement flooding his features. Rocket let out a near hysterical laugh and nodded, shoving the pot at Gamora. 

"There's a fucking leaf!" he screamed happily. The assassin let a tiny smile form as well and she showed Drax the pot as well. 

"It appears that our plant friend is regrowing himself." Drax hummed, putting down his knives to pick up the pot with a gentleness that the others were surprised the assassin was capable of. Rocket got a little grabby though, practically launching himself on top of Drax in his desperation to get Groot back. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

The next time Rocket heard the song that had been playing when he realized Groot was growing back, he paid attention to the lyrics. 

_Wouldn't it be nice if we were older? Then we wouldn't have to wait so long_

_And wouldn't it be nice to live together in the kind of world where we belong?_

_You know it's gonna make it that much better when we can say goodnight and stay together_

He looked at Groot's pot, where the minuscule sapling was waving his little branches and dancing along to Quill's music. A smile broke out across Rocket's furry face and he put down the weapon he was working on. Before Groot even realized what was happening, Rocket had picked the pot up and was dancing around the empty cargo bay, humming along as he did so. 

"I think we did find the kind of world where we belong Groot." Rocket murmured, and the sapling let out a tiny "I am Groot!" in agreement and put his teeny little hands on the tip of Rocket's nose, holding on to his friend the best he could as they danced away. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

_Wouldn't It Be Nice_ , The Beach Boys, 1966


	2. Dancing in the Moonlight

The first time it happened, the Guardians had just gotten off of a moon gone critical with seconds left to spare. They were so relieved to be alive that Peter doesn't even remember who turned on the radio. All he knew was that once they got onto the ship, Rocket tore off to collect Groot from the sun lamps he had rigged up. By the time he made it back, a significantly larger Groot in tow, the music was pounding through the speakers of the Milano. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

The magic happened with the first few keyboard notes. A now blood-free Gamora's hips started swaying almost imperceptibly to the beat. Peter thought his eyes were going to pop out of his skull when he realized his bobbing wasn't the only movement happening in the spacious cargo bay they spent time in when the Milano was on autopilot headed back towards Knowhere. He had to pick his jaw up off of the floor at the sight, and by the time he did so he also realized what song was playing. He split into his classic shit-eating grin and sauntered over to the green assassin. 

_"We get it on most every night when that old moon gets so big and bright,"_ he sang, sliding up into her space and matching his movements to hers without touching her. He didn't want broken hands, especially not after the last time they had 'danced' together. Gamora snorted at him and shook her head, but surprisingly she didn't stop dancing. 

_"It's a supernatural delight, everybody was dancing in the moonlight._ " Peter continued, unwilling to let this moment pass him by. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something else beginning to move, but he paid no attention for the time being; he was just thrilled that Gamora was loosening up around them. " _Everybody here is out of sight, they don't bark and they don't bite,_ " he sang, smirking as he tipped his head to the side to see Rocket swinging around with Groot's pot clutched tightly in his little arms, Groot hanging onto Rocket's snout like it was the only thing keeping him alive.  _There's bark and a bite right there_  he thought, but he kept singing. 

" _They keep things loose, they keep things light. Everybody was dancing in the moonlight_." Peter's voice rang out. Everyone stuttered a bit when Drax's gravelly voice took up the chorus, but they fell back into time almost immediately and Peter and Drax kept singing along. 

After the guitar solo, Drax stood and offered the group a weak smile. 

"You do keep things loose and light...lighter than I thought I would experience since my family was taken from me." Drax murmured in explanation as he started dancing as well. 

Peter managed to put his hands on Gamora's hips without her trying to kill him, Groot made happy little noises from his pot, Rocket practically purred, and the Guardians of the Galaxy continued to celebrate their continued existence by dancing the night away under the light of a burning moon. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

_Dancing in the Moonlight_ , King Harvest, 1973


	3. I Want You Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A blatant Peter/Gamora chapter. If you don't like that ship, please skip :)

She was going to  _kill_ that  **krutacker** if it was the last thing she did. That sloppy, drunken, idiotic, self-absorbed, gorgeous...she shook her head. Peter Quill was not gorgeous. 

But if she was being honest, he wasn't normally sloppy, drunken, idiotic, or self-absorbed either. Just when they had some down time and he picked up a pretty little number from some quadrant she hadn't even bothered to remember. 

It shouldn't have bothered her so severely, but it did. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

Peter slammed his head against the streetlight again and groaned. He had been so good. He had tried so hard to win Gamora over by being noble (he snorted), kind, hell, even  _well behaved_ , and it hadn't worked. So when he saw that green beauty all cozied up with some dick from Xandar, he did the first thing that came to mind. 

He acted on the little (unfortunately) green monster that was jealousy and picked up the first chick he could. Which wasn't that hard really. All he had to do to win over those girls?

"Baby, I'm Star-Lord." 

Cue the swooning.

-x-x-x-x-x-

By the time either one of them got back to the ship they were cranky, hung over, and definitely not at their best. Rocket had taken Groot out to find a bigger pot with Drax; the Flora Colossus was beginning to live up to his name and was now too heavy for Rocket to carry. 

"Gamora-" Peter began as the Zen Whoberi stepped onto the ship. He stopped talking the second he saw the flash of a silvery knife blade. She was  _pissed_ , but why? He hadn't done anything to her. 

_Unless she's mad that you picked up last night_ his mind offered hopefully. He grimaced, trying to shake off that little spark of hope, that little whisper of  _maybe_ that rushed through his veins, but it was helpless. 

He had to find out. He needed to get back in her good graces. And how was he going to do it?

The Peter Quill way. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

The second the keyboard zinged, Gamora had a knife in her hands. Her head was pounding, she was upset, jealous, and hurt, and now he was playing his stupid goddamn music. Peter Quill was a dead man. 

But when she turned to storm into the cockpit and give him a piece of her mind, she found him crowding into her space already. 

_"Uh huh, let me tell ya now."_ he sang along with the high-pitched Terran voice pouring out of the speakers. 

" _When I had you to myself, I didn't want you around. Those pretty faces always made you stand out in a crowd but someone picked you from the bunch, one glance was all it took. Now it's much too late for me to take a second look."_ Peter sang, his stupid dancing making Gamora's rage soften just a bit. She slid the knife back into its sheath and had to admit there was some weight to the words. She  **had** gotten angry the moment someone else noticed how special Peter was. But maybe...no, it couldn't be. There had been that Xandarian man that had wanted to 'properly thank her for helping save his world', but she had shaken him so quickly...Peter hadn't noticed, had he?

But then again, the lyrics could have gone both ways. Maybe Peter had acted so foolishly because he had been jealous and had misunderstood the situation. 

_"Oh baby give me one more chance; show you that I love you. Won't you please let me back in your heart? Oh darlin' I was blind to let you go, let you go baby, but now since I see you in his arms I want you back. Yes I do now; I want you back."_ Peter belted out, and the look in his eyes was enough to confirm Gamora's admittedly hopeful thoughts. Peter  **had** been jealous of the Xandarian, he had wanted nothing more than her...

Her usually stoic face split into a grin and she nodded, letting him continue his serenade. 

By the time she heard 'oh just once more chance to show you that I love you' she was already in his arms, kissing him with everything she had. 

She was so happy that she didn't even punch him when he skipped a few songs to play 'Let's Get It On'. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

_I Want You Back,_ Jackson 5, 1973


	4. Old Time Rock and Roll

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Filthy? She has no idea. If we had a blacklight, it would look like a Jackson Pollock painting"
> 
> She found a blacklight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While there is nothing explicit here, this chapter does mention each of the Guardians gettin' down and dirty. And alcohol consumption.

Peter walked into the cockpit of the ship and immediately wished that he had taken that Arcturan girl up on her offer to spend the night. Sitting in the pilot's seat was a seriously pissed off looking Gamora wielding not a weapon, but a handheld blacklight. 

"I looked up Jackson Pollock...and you're disgusting." she sneered, shoving the blacklight into his chest. For some reason, Peter felt his whole face heat up and he trailed after her like a lost puppy.

"Aw Gamora, c'mon. It's not that..." she cut him off by seizing the blacklight and flipping it on. The handprints smeared across the walls weren't even the  _worst_ part. 

"You're cleaning the ship." she snapped, shoving a mop into his hands that she had apparently pulled out of thin air. 

"I really don't think some of this is mine." Peter winced, leaning towards the wall and finding himself face to face with some very small, very long-fingered handprints. "Yeah, no, these? These are raccoon." he added, pointing to the lit up marks. Gamora bent down to look and grimaced once more. 

"I don't even want to know what's going on, do I?" Rocket questioned, sauntering in at that moment with a gun slung over his shoulder and a small but now mobile Groot at his back. 

"Gamora has demanded that us disgusting men clean the ship." Peter beamed, pointing to the paw prints proudly. 

"I can explain that." Rocket said, and if he had been Terran, Peter knew he would have been blushing. Groot let out a creaking sound that was as close to a snicker as he could produce and gently swiped at one of Rocket's ears with a vine. 

"No need my good man. Just get the supplies together." Peter chirped, happy to have to share his burden with someone else. 

"I am Groot!" Groot crowed.

"Ah, shuddup ya big shrub." Rocket grumbled, his tail slumped as he stalked off towards the rarely (read: never) used cleaning cupboard. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

"Eugh!" Peter shrieked as they threw open the door to Drax's bunk. Him and Rocket were both dressed up in what could have passed for hazmat suits, Peter wearing his mask and Rocket donning a surgical mask and goggles. They both had on rubber gloves and were wielding mops and bottles of spray cleaner. 

"This is just...I think I'm gonna puke." Rocket murmured as Peter swung the blacklight over the room. 

"Hey Draaaaaaax!" Peter called out, sing songy. "Guess who gets to help clean?" 

-x-x-x-x-x-

Gamora nearly spit out the tea she was sipping on when the three men entered the canteen in their getup. 

"Isn't this a little...excessive?" she questioned, gingerly putting her cup down on the table. Peter let his mask retract and the smirk on his face wasn't something Gamora wanted to see. 

"No, I'd say not. I didn't realize just how nasty this place was until you actually got a blacklight out. Aaaaand, well, we did a little snooping around. You may be no Jackson Pollock, but you're pretty nasty yourself lady." he said. 

"What? You went into my bunk? With a  _blacklight_?" Gamora breathed, her cheeks darkening significantly. 

"We sure did, and honey, you've been just as down and dirty as the rest of us mammals, so get to scrubbin'." Rocket smirked, throwing a scrub brush at her. She caught it reflexively and groaned. So much for a relaxing evening. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

They all stared at Groot's side of the bunk room he shared with Rocket. The walls were  _plastered_ with pollen. 

"Okay, that's just...man, I sleep in here!" Rocket whined, tugging at his ears with his little paws. Just then a tiny Groot lumbered up, his head stopping around Gamora's waist, and he squeaked a bit. 

"I...am Groot?" he said sheepishly, and Rocket turned on him with a vicious grin. 

"Oh, don't play innocent man. You've been going through some freaky tree puberty, haven't you?" he asked. Groot just stared at his feet and held out his hand for a mop. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

By the time that most of the ship was clean, everyone was exhausted, cranky, and unfortunately well acquainted with each other's sexual prowess. They reached the shared living space at the same time and looked around. 

"Let's just get it done." Gamora sighed, tossing her mask aside. They all knew that nothing...disturbing would have happened in here since there was almost always another person occupying a couch or worktop. Peter nodded in agreement and retracted his mask, popping the tape deck in with a finger. They all scrubbed away, humming and dancing to the beats until the room shone. 

"Thank creation that's done." Gamora huffed, flopping onto a couch. 

"No!" Peter and Rocket yelled in unison, only imagining the things that remained on that suit. They were going straight for an incinerator the next time the Milano was planetside. 

"Fine, fine. Change and then drinks?" she suggested, popping right back up. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

"What the hell is Quill doing?" Rocket huffed as Gamora poured them all tall glasses of some weird whiskey they had picked up in a shady marketplace on their last mission. 

"I am Groot." Groot supplied, making grabby hands at the amber liquid and having it promptly swiped away by Rocket. 

"He better not be, we just cleaned the damn place! And hell no you're not having booze, you're still a kid. Tree. Sapling? Whatever. You're getting water until you're big again." Rocket sniped, throwing back Groot's helping much to the other being's dismay. 

Just as Drax was about to suggest going to check on Peter, the song changed and nine piano beats filled the room. Just as the last beat faded, Peter skidded across the now polished floor in nothing but a pair of socks, a barely buttoned pink shirt, and a pair of underwear that were so small they couldn't be seen under the hem of the button-down. He spun around just as the lyrics started, singing along into the mouth of a bottle of vodka. 

"What is he doing?" Rocket whispered. 

"I think it's a Terran thing." Gamora replied before she was pulled up onto her feet by a near-delirious Quill. 

"It's a Terran thing alright." he laughed, spinning her. She let out a shriek of delight and let him drag her around the room. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

A few drinks later, the song was being repeated. Rocket screamed and skidded across the floor, crashing into the wall after having tripped over the hem of one of Peter's far-too-large shirts. Drax was laughing drunkenly, and Gamora was trying not to flash the rest of the crew a peek of her lacy black underwear as she strutted around in a rather soft button-down of Peter's, this one a dark shade of blue that contrasted nicely against her green skin. Groot was creaking with laughter, having opted to go without a shirt but still skidding around after Rocket, having gotten a hold of a bottle himself after Rocket stopped paying attention. 

They all turned and faced each other before belting out 

" _Still like that old time rock 'n roll! That kind of music just soothes my soul. I reminisce about the days of old with that old time rock 'n roll!"_

-x-x-x-x-x-

_Old Time Rock 'N Roll,_ Bob Seger, 1978

_Risky Business,_ Paul Brickman starring Tom Cruise, 1983

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Risky Business came out in 1983. Peter was taken from Earth in the film in 1988, and based on his age and his mother's willingness to give him boss music, I figured he had to have seen the movie. Or at least the epic dancing scene. 
> 
> This has been my favorite chapter to write so far. I love the mental image of the gang just scrubbing down the whole ship, disgusted with each other, and then having an epic, drunken dance off. And I also figured that Groot would be an adolescent/teen at this point in the fic and since teens do stupid things like drink he is doing so as well. Besides, he still remembers adult Groot stuff so why not?


	5. The Lion Sleeps Tonight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seeing Rocket vulnerable was rare. The team tries not to let it pass them by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all of you who have left kudos, comments, hits, and bookmarks. Thanks to the subscribers as well. I hope you're enjoying all the crack here. It's hard typing with a sprained pinky.

Seeing Rocket vulnerable was a rare sight. The only other time that Peter can remember Rocket's thorny walls coming down was right after Groot had been blown to pieces, and that was, well, not something he wanted to repeat. 

So when Peter walked in to see a very sleepy, very sober Rocket sprawled out on the sofa near the cockpit he suppressed the smile twitching at his lips and moved to the tape deck. 

"What're you doin'?" Rocket slurred, stretching halfheartedly. 

"Just putting on some music." Peter answered quietly, chuckling as the " _ee-e-e-oh-mum-a-weh"_ echoed throughout the otherwise quiet ship. Rocket's eyes drifted as he desperately tried to fight the sleep threatening to overtake him, and failed about thirty seconds into the song. 

" _In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight_." Peter whisper-sang as he picked up a blanket off the back of the sofa and draped it over the now curled up and snoring raccoon. Until that moment, the only person who had seen Rocket asleep was Groot. It warmed Peter's heart to know that Rocket was feeling comfortable enough with the crew to fall asleep in such a public area. He brushed his fingers between Rocket's ears once, eyes widening at how soft the fur there was, and then wandered off into the cockpit, dimming the internal lights and singing along softly as he guided the Milano through the abyss of space to their next great adventure. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

The next morning he found the blanket folded up at the bottom of his bunk with a hastily scrawled note.

_Thanks._

_R_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this was sooooo short but I needed to get the image out of my mind.


	6. Iris

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter remembers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here there be dragons. And by dragons I mean really emotional moments for Peter Quill. Mentions of Mama Quill and her death, so if that was really upsetting for you stay away from this chapter. Sorry guys. I had feelings last night.
> 
> Thanks to those of you that have commented, left kudos, bookmarked, and subscribed. I love you all.

Peter didn't know what sector they were in, what planet they were on, or who was on their tail this time (because someone inevitably always was). All he knew was the date on the Terran calendar. 

And boy did it make him want to burn this place to the ground. 

Instead of burning though, he did the one thing he did once a year. He fiddled with the small radio he had swiped off of someone when he was twenty and was still working with the Ravagers. His trusty orange headphones had made the transition from the Walkman, still lovingly tucked into his pocket, to the audio port of the radio. It was a weird piece of tech, something invented for people that liked to listen to Terran radio broadcasts for the fun of it as other ships cruised close enough to the planet to pick up the signals and record them for later use, but it did the job well enough.

It had started the day Peter got the radio. It had been an impulsive snatch, one made out of desperation and anger more than anything else. He had realized the Terran date and had cracked a bit. The anniversary of his mother's death, the day the Ravagers came and took him away. And all he could think to do was listen to as much Terran music as he could for his mom, the woman who loved music and loved sharing it with him. That one day out of the Terran year Peter would listen to all the music that him and his mom missed, and he'd talk to the stars as if she were floating amongst them, wishing that he had just taken her hand.

Twisting the dial, Peter frowned as he tried to find a station that wasn't playing a commercial and sighed as he heard the gentle strumming of guitars. 

_"And I'd give up forever to touch you, cause I know that you feel me somehow. You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be and I don't want to go home right now. And all I can taste is this moment, and all I can breathe is your life. Sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss you tonight."_

The lyrics cut deep, deeper than the music usually ever did. Tears welled up in Peter's eyes and he didn't even bother wiping them away, instead allowing them to cascade down his stubbly cheeks. He tapped the RECORD button for some reason, wanting to have this song every time he was feeling down about his mom. 

" _And I don't want the world to see me cause I don't think that they'd understand. When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am."_

Peter hiccuped and looked up into the sky; on this planet, the night sky was beautiful. It was a whorl of purples, blacks, and yellows, the nearest nebula clearly visible above. 

"Mom...I um." he sighed, rubbing at his face tiredly. "I'm doing better now. I'm uh. Trying to be the good guy you always wanted me to be. It was hard when I was with the Ravagers, but now I've got these friends. We might have actually saved the galaxy." 

_"And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming or the moment of truth in your lies. When everything feels like the movies, yeah you bleed just to know you're alive."_

"They're good people Ma. Real good. You'd like Gamora. She's pretty, but she's tough. Sorta like you. She fights like hell when she feels like it's right, even though she did a lot of bad stuff in the past. Shit, we all did." he continued, not even realizing that the others were walking up behind him, having been worried for their friend that had disappeared onto a hill. "God, and Drax? Oh, you'd love messing with him. He takes everything literally and you were always so colorful...he'd be so confused and you'd just laugh and laugh. Not at him, but y'know. Just 'cause it's funny sometimes." Peter hiccuped and took a slow breath. 

_"And I don't want the world to see me cause I don't think that they'd understand. When everything's meant to be broken, I just want you to know who I am."_

"Rocket's interesting. He uh, well, he's sorta a raccoon. 'Cept different. These scientists did all sorts of horrible stuff to him and now he's smart and he can talk and walk and he's a person. A furry little person. It's kinda cool, but sometimes I wish he didn't have to go through all that crap because he's always angry. I think he's scared too. You'd know how to get him to open up though. You always did." he shook his head, smiling through his tears. "You'd like Groot the most though I think. Groot's this big tree guy. I think he's a guy anyway. Rocket call him a he and Groot's never corrected him. He's huge, but he's gentle when he doesn't have to protect someone, and he makes these real pretty flowers you'd just love. God, I could see you talking away to him and him just "I am Groot"ing back at you like he always does, but you'd understand what he was saying because you were always real good at that. You could probably even teach him genders. It confuses him sometimes. I think it's cause we're mammals or something." 

Groot made a soft crooning noise and the group got closer. 

"I just miss you so much sometimes Ma. It's...it's not fair. Why'd you gotta get sick and leave?" Peter choked out, barely biting back a sob as a fresh wave of tears rolled down his cheeks. "I just wanted it to be us like it always was. No Ravagers, no Infinity stones, none of it. Just you and your little Star-Lord. Guh, I'm not a little Star-Lord anymore though. They call me that now. Star-Lord. When I was an outlaw I wanted it to be my name but nobody would ever use it. Now I'm a big hero and they do. I think that's your fault. They probably knew that I shouldn'ta been using that name when I was doing bad stuff 'cause it was your name for me." he rambled, his shoulders shaking as it all came to the surface. He opened his mouth to continue, but just then he felt a warm hand on the back of his neck. 

Peter's head snapped up and he saw Gamora smiling down at him gently, no pity, but understanding on her face. He nodded shakily and she sank down beside him, pulling him into a gentle hug. Once he was leaning against her, Rocket did the unthinkable and sat in his lap, nuzzling his cold, wet nose against Peter's neck comfortingly. Drax sat heavily on Peter's other side, squeezing his shoulder with a gentleness that he shouldn't have been capable of. Groot stood at Peter's back, taking the weight Peter wasn't leaning against Gamora, and flooded the air with those little fireflies of his before setting out a large bunch of fragrant flowers at Peter's feet. 

Peter hit the ERASE button. 

He didn't care if the world saw him now, because his world was encompassed in this rag-tag group, and they did understand. 

-x-x-x-x-x-

 _Iris_ , Goo Goo Dolls, 1998

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mrr, okay, so that tiny tidbit about Groot's gender might've been something I felt necessary to include. I've been seeing a lot of people online FREAKING OUT because people are gendering Groot and "GROOT IS A TREE, STOP UNNECESSARILY GENDERING THEM". And while I am fully supportive of gender neutrality, within the Marvel Universe Groot /is/ gendered. He is referred to as a 'he' in comics, the movie, and on any (and yes, I know wikipedia pages and such aren't always reliable) wiki (Including the Marvel wiki, which is pretty damn good about sorting characters by gender) I could find. 
> 
> This isn't an attack on gender neutrality, this is simply me trying to stick to what Marvel gave me to work with. 
> 
> Would I normally gender a tree? No. But Groot is not simply a tree. Groot is a sentient being that is apparently comfortable with being labeled as a 'he' because while he only says "I am Groot", Rocket can understand what Groot is trying to say and if Groot was like "yo, I'm neither male nor female" I'm sure Rocket would be cool about it and not gender Groot. 
> 
> I do apologize if my gendering of Groot has offended anyone, but this is my explanation for it and I hope you understand. If you've got any concerns or questions I'll be more than willing to talk about it :)


End file.
